TSCA Reform Bill Signed by President Obama

The American Cleaning Institute (ACI) released the following statement from Ernie Rosenberg, ACI President & CEO, on President Barack Obama signing into law the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act, which modernizes the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA):
 
 
“Seeing this legislation become the law of the land represents the culmination of an incredible journey. It’s been nearly a decade since the American Cleaning Institute and other voices began calling for modernizing TSCA, the principal federal chemical safety law.
 
 
“We thank President Obama for signing the Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act and congratulate the bipartisan leaders in both houses of Congress who worked diligently in the trenches to get this bill to the President’s desk. The passage of a bipartisan environmental statute, the first major environmental legislation in 25 years, in the face of partisan pressures is a huge achievement.
 
 
“There is still a great deal of work that lies in front of us to ensure the Environmental Protection Agency implements this law effectively, fairly and efficiently so that the federal program is once again credible.” 
 
 
For years, TSCA Reform has been a key issue for companies in the household and personal products industry. As part of the TSCA reform, for the first time, the EPA will be required to systematically prioritize all chemicals currently in commerce for safety evaluations, SCJohnson noted. Other key reforms to this legislation include: 
 
 
• Requiring the EPA to make an affirmative safety determination before a new chemical can be brought to market; 
 
 
• Promoting greater transparency in the TSCA program by reforming the way in which confidential business information is protected and shared; 
 
 
• Promoting application of a uniform federal chemical management program through limited and reasonable preemption of state regulatory authority;
 
 
• Providing EPA with adequate resources, through fees on industry, to help defray the costs of administering a revamped TSCA program.